Russian National Theatre troupe brings ‘Giselle' to Hanover

It's all there in the great romantic ballet “Giselle.” How can you improve on that?

You can't, according to Alexander Daev, ballet master of The Russian National Ballet Theatre. But that doesn't mean the piece cannot be performed in the best Russian ballet traditions, and the company aspires to do exactly that when it returns to Worcester Monday with a performance of its production of “Giselle” at The Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts.

The performance, presented by Music Worcester Inc., is a fully staged rendering of the hypnotic ballet with music by Adolphe Adam and original choreography by Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot. Although first performed at the Paris Opera in France in 1841, “Giselle” has long been sort of unofficially claimed by Russia. In 1843, the ballet was performed in Moscow and a year later in St. Petersburg. By 1868 “Giselle” had been dropped from the Paris Opera repertory, but Russian dancers, ballet masters and choreographers kept it alive. Choreography staged by Marius Petipa for the Imperial Ballet in 1884 is used to this day.

Set in the medieval Rhineland, Giselle is the story of a peasant girl who falls for the disguised Duke Albrecht. The Duke is dressed as a peasant to have some fun before his marriage to a woman of nobility. When Giselle finds out the less than noble truth, she is heartbroken and dies. Giselle is summoned from her grave by female spirits who may not be the sort someone like the Duke, albeit grief-stricken, should dance with.

The Russian National Ballet Theatre and its sister The National Ballet Theatre of Moscow were formed in 1989 by dancers who had performed with some of the most prestigious official Soviet Union ballet companies.

But in wanting to venture forth on their own, they also intended to stay true to the principles that have made Russian ballet so great and timeless.

Monday's performance will be the third consecutive year The Russian National Ballet Theatre/The National Ballet Theatre of Moscow have come to The Hanover Theatre.

Daev, who has been with The Russian National Ballet Theatre 10 years and is its emissary on its current U.S. tour (which has more than 80 performances), answered some questions recently via email and a translator.

Q Are you directing “Giselle?”

A

No, we use the choreography of Perrot, Coralli and Marius Petipa.

Q What is your approach to staging “Giselle?” How do you keep a production such as this fresh?

A Our approach is to follow what has been done before because it is a brilliant romantic ballet that doesn't need improving upon. Our dancers are young and fresh.

QWhat were the reasons for forming the ballet company?

A Sergey and Elena Radchenko formed the ballet company in 1989 as the first independent, private ballet theater without government backing. At that time, it was a very strong and novel move on their part. They wanted to have a small ballet company that they could control and adhere to the highest standards of the grand Russian ballet tradition.

Q Would this have been impossible if the Soviet Union still existed?

A Yes, it would have been impossible to tour when we were the Soviet Union because our company is a touring company. We travel internationally all the time and in USSR times our borders were closed.

Q Do you have specific artistic goals?

A Yes, our goal is to keep the heritage of our ballet masters alive and bring to audiences the highest standards of classical ballet, as we have inherited a great tradition from the Russian masters who came before us.

Q In a worldwide recession, how are the arts in Russia faring? How important is state support?

A In Moscow we have not noticed a change in theater attendance since the worldwide recession. The theater is a strong traditional part of our lives and it is very important to us. People go to the theater no matter what their economic background. Our theaters vary in ticket price range. For example, the government has special programs to give seniors and students discounts. State support is important. However we are a privately funded company and therefore our tours are very important to us.

Q It's a demanding schedule — how do you cope with it?

A We are young and strong and we love what we're doing, so it's exciting and, we don't see it as “coping.”

Q This will be your third appearance here. What do you think of Worcester and its audiences?

A We enjoy coming to Worcester and performing for a most appreciative audience.

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